Impact Crater
by Aprilup
Summary: Battle with Aizen is over. But the internal battle  that Aizen started  of hearts and minds within everyone is still continuing. But maybe, just maybe, a particular 10th Division Captain can change that. Toshiro/Momo  Hints of Ichi/Ruki, Gin/Ran, etc.  :D
1. Orbit

**AUTHOR TIME:** YO! I'm back for a second helping! But this time only because my friend insisted on more and she threatened that she wouldn't add me to her favourites list unless I write a multi-chapter story, so here I go! (BTW, check her out, she's really good! bookwormtiff is her account name)

This is set after the whole Aizen Bashing Arc (a new name for the Deicide arc that bookwormtiff created).

**Impact Crater**

When a meteor gets pulled out of space by the gravity of a planet, the speed and strength of the pull causes it to rush through the atmosphere and, if it's big enough, crash into the planet's surface. What's left is a few pieces of what used to be the meteor and a huge, un-erasable, unforgettable… impact crater.

Hitsugaya Toshiro, Captain of the 10th Division in the Gotei 13 Squads, stood at the front of a plain hospital door. He had been in that position for some time, thinking about whether to go in or not. He raised his hand, which was lightly clenched into a fist, and hesitated a little before tapping lightly on the door.

There was no reply, nobody to call 'come in!'

Nothing.

Frowning, he gently pushed the door open and poked his head in. On the white sheets lay Hinamori Momo, Vice-Captain of 5th Division.

_Of course, Unohana-taicho said that she was thrashing about and screaming, so they had to sedate her. _

The frown never left his face.

_She should be awake by now._

Sighing, he grabbed one of the chairs near the door and pulled it close to Hinamori's bed, then sat down.

He was still stunned by what he had just seen.

_**FLASHBACK**_

_The battle with Aizen was over; Kurosaki Ichigo had ended it with the cost of his own powers. He wouldn't be coming back to Soul Society anymore. _

_Toshiro had been released from hospital last night and had been too tired to do anything but drag himself home and collapse into sleep. Fighting with the 4__th__ Squad members and even Unohana-Taicho herself to release him earlier than predicted had drained a lot of his energy. _

_In the morning, after dragging himself up, he found himself walking in a different direction from his 10__th__ Division headquarters. A little short stroll wouldn't hurt. _

_He arrived at the top of Sokyoku Hill._

_A slight breeze ruffled his already messed up shock of white hair as he surveyed Soul Society below. Here and there in Seireitei, there were buildings undergoing construction. As soon as that was over, Seireitei would be back to normal. Back to before Kurosaki Ichigo had stormed through to save Kuchiki Rukia, back to before the traitor Aizen had revealed himself and his plans. _

_He gave a little sigh. If only people were easy to fix as buildings were. _

_Somewhere a bell rang, signifying 10am in the morning. "It's late," he quietly thought. "I'd better get back and check on Matsumoto, she's probably sloshed out on the couch again."_

_Ever since the battle, Matsumoto and the other fuku-taichos had been drinking every night; leaving Hitsugaya a huge pile of paperwork that had built up while he was in the care of 4__th__ Division._

_He pushed open the door to his office and was greeted by a most unusual sight. _

_Matsumoto Rangiku was sitting in __**his**__ chair, at __**his**__ desk, doing __**his**__ paperwork. _

_He rubbed his eyes; maybe he had overdosed on the painkillers he had nicked from 4__th__ Division. This couldn't possibly be happening. _

_Matsumoto finally noticed that there was someone in the room. She looked up._

"_Ah, taicho."_

_She looked horrible. She had bags under her eyes, and her eyes were red and puffy from weeping. _

"_What are you doing, Matsumoto?"_

_The big-breasted lady looked confused._

"_Paperwork?"_

_Hitsugaya Toshiro was thoroughly stunned._

"_Yes, I know it's paperwork, but why?"_

_Matsumoto put down the brush and leaned back into the chair._

"_It was something that distracted me. Sake didn't help."_

_She sighed and then gave Hitsugaya a small sad smile, which caused something in him to cringe at the sight of her so pitiful and down. _

"_Plus, taicho, now you don't have to yell at me for not doing my work now, ne?"_

_He couldn't reply, his body felt stiff._

"_Why don't you go visit Hinamori-kun, Taicho? I think they're finally allowing visitors"_

"_Ah." _

_Toshiro felt numb as he walked out, forgetting to close the door. _

_As he left, he swore he heard Matsumoto utter something._

"_Gin. . ."_

_**END FLASHBACK**_

Momo tossed around violently in her bed, shaking Hitsugaya out of his reverie.

"Aizen… Aizen-taicho… taicho…"

He stood up and attempted to shake Hinamori awake. But she just thrashed harder.

"Aize-… Aizen-taicho… Shiro-chan…"

He froze.

"Shiro-chan… why… where are you… Shiro-chan… what…"

He couldn't take it anymore.

"Hinamori, wake up! Goddammit, WAKE UP!"

She stopped.

"Hinamori?"

There was no reply. She had fallen asleep.

Hitsugaya breathed out a sigh of relief and allowed his tense muscles to relax. His head fell onto the pillow next to Hinamori's.

_Hinamori. . ._

The pain she must be in right now. Her physical wounds that **he **had inflicted upon her, as well as her mental state, insured that she would be in pain for long time. Betrayal had cut, not once, not twice, but 3 times into her.

First she had betrayed him that night when she received the false letter from Aizen. She had been so confused and sad, then...

Hitsugaya gently took Hinamori's hand into his own.

Then she had been betrayed by Aizen, when he revealed himself and stabbed her.

He tightened his grip on the pale, unresisting hand.

Afterwards, Aizen had tricked him into stabbing Momo in the same place. Another betrayal.

_Gomen… gomen Momo… I'm sorry… I'm sorry Momo…_

Those words he had tried to utter to her so many times, yet was never fully able to say it into her conscious mind. He would always falter under those beautiful, brown eyes. After all, what can a simple apology do? It can't erase the damage already imposed, so what's the point?

A single tear made its way down the Captain's face and splashed onto the clean white pillow.

Minutes later, Hitsugaya was asleep next to her.

When she was definitely sure he was deep asleep, Hinamori opened her eyes and turned her head to face her childhood friend.


	2. Atmosphere

**AUTHOR TIME: **DAMN IT!

3 THINGS!

First: I really wanted to make a really good cliffie last chappie! But I suck at cliffies! I always want to wrap thing up carefully and have a good ending… :( oh well, next time!

Second: the plot is progressing so slowly! sweatdrops keep on reading, the plot is coming… slowly but surely!

Third: THIS CHAPTER IS NOT HITSU/RUKIA! I am just using Rukia because she has a reason to be sad! :P (just like how I used Matsumoto last chappie) The story says Hitsu/Momo so it will be.

Disclaimer: . . .i am a girl who owns bleach. . .LOL last time I checked, a guy owned bleach! TITE KUBO OWNS BLEACH! I merely wish I did . . . like everyone else on this website.

""""""""""""""""""""""""""""

It had been Unohana-taicho who'd woken the sleeping Captain. He reluctantly followed the choker-braided lady out, taking one last glance at the sleeping Hinamori.

"Now, you take care of yourself, Hitsugaya-taicho."

"Ah."

It was late afternoon, and in Soul Society most people stayed inside around this time to have an afternoon nap or snack. Hitsugaya's house was empty, with just the bare essentials. You could hardly tell that anyone was living there at all. It was true though; most of the time he just slept in the office trying to catch up on paperwork; other times he was out on missions or stuck in 4th Division again. So obviously, the white haired youth had no plans on going back home.

Instead he headed towards his old home in Rukongai to visit his grandmother, and as he passed the market district he saw a familiar face wandering around. The girl who was the owner of that face proceeded to the nearest fruit store, buying some watermelon to cool down.

His mouth began to water as he looked at those juicy watermelons. His taste for them over the years hadn't dimmed; in fact it had increased, and it was so hard to get watermelons tasting just as good as the Rukongai ones in the Seireitei. He had grown up with Rukongai's sweet watermelons, and nothing else would taste better to his tastebuds.

"Kuchiki."

The petite soul reaper nearly dropped her watermelon.

"Hitsugaya-taicho?"

There was a brief moment of awkward silence, and Kuchiki Rukia realised that the 10th Division Captain was staring at her watermelon quite hungrily.

"…Ano, would you like some watermelon, taicho?"

"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""

Half an hour later, Hitsugaya leaned back contently into a peach tree after devouring most of Rukia's watermelon. He was feeling much better; watermelon seemed to have that effect on him, just like chocolate for most people.

But while slurping the watermelon, he'd noticed that Rukia's slice just lay idly in her hand. Her eyes had been staring distantly into space, looking somewhere but nowhere at the same time. It was the same expression that Matsumoto had had on her face, and the shock of seeing it again made him forget the watermelon for a moment.

"Kuchiki?"

The soul reaper had been suddenly pulled out of her thoughts.

"Uh, is something wrong, Hitsugaya-taicho?"

He'd shaken his head. "No. Thanks for the watermelon."

"You're welcome."

He'd turned and headed towards the hills, and he'd sworn he heard Kuchiki utter something as he left.

"_Ichigo…" _

""""""""""""""""""""""""""""

"…"

"… -iro!"

"Toshiro!"

He sat up, rubbing his eyes. "Hinamori?" Then he took a better look at the figure currently climbing up the hill.

"Baa-chan!"

The old granny was puffing by the time she arrived under the peach tree.

"Are you alright, baa-chan? Here, you'd better sit down," offered Toshiro, now standing up. The grandmother smiled and sat down on the particularly soft patch of grass Toshiro was sitting on before.

"Ah. Arigato, Toshiro. My body just isn't as youthful and strong as it used to be."

He frowned.

"Baa-chan, why did you come all the way here? You could've sent a message or something."

The words sounded harsh and cold, but the old lady just chuckled.

"You haven't changed one bit, my little one." She knew it was his way of caring for her.

"I just wanted to talk to you, Toshiro." She sighed. "How is Momo-chan?"

He didn't answer.

"_Souka._ I see."

He turned and faced his grandmother, his face dropping the icy façade.

"Baa-chan, I just… I just don't understand why. It's not fair. Why Hinamori?"

"Life isn't always fair, Toshiro. It has unexpected twists and changes, some good and some bad. But Momo-chan isn't the only one hurting, isn't she?"

The frown deepened on his face.

"What do you mean, Baa-chan? I can't think of anyone else going through as much pain as she is."

Another sigh escaped his grandmother's mouth, and she decided to change the topic. He'll work it out sooner or later.

"Do you remember how you and Momo-chan used to lie there for hours staring at the stars?"

He nodded. "That stupid bedwetter never shut up the whole time."

Both of them gave a little laugh at that.

Hitsugaya looked up at the half-moon. "_Arigato_, Baa-chan"

The old lady smiled.

"_Domo._ You're welcome."

""""""""""""""""""

**AUTHOR TIME: ** :D 2 subscribers! That's the only reason I updated! I know in reality 2 really sucks, but having even 1 makes me happy! THANK YOU!

SO: READ, REVIEW, SUBSCRIBE!

Has anyone voted on my poll yet? VOTE!


	3. Confrontation

**AUTHOR TIME: **last time was such a sucky chapter! cries I promise this time will be a bit better as Matsumoto finally decides to snap back to her normal self and do something about the relationship between Toshiro and Momo. Please excuse any grammar errors as my beta's comp crashed so i edited myself. . .

THIS CHAPPIE IS DEDICATED TO icyangel27 : the only one who reviewed for chapiie 2! thank you so much!

Disclaimer: I have specially captured Toshiro for this wonderful disclaimer! Now if you please Shiro-Chan!

Toshiro: Hitsugaya Taicho to you! You creepy fan girl, why the heck did you kidnap me?

Me: Just say the disclaimer so we can go on with the story!

Toshiro: . . .

Me: Say it, SAY IT!

Toshiro: Make me.

Me: Fine, you asked for it! Matsumotoooooo !

Matsumoto: Hai Aprilup!

Me: Feel to yell out everything embarrassing about your Captain.

Matsumoto: REALLY?

Toshiro: No, go away Matsumoto.

Matsumoto: Aww, but taicho!

Toshiro: Aprilup does not own Bleach or me or anything besides this fanfic.

Me: There, now was that so hard?

Toshiro: glares

Chapter 3

While being dragged along at a furious pace, Kuchiki Rukia wondered once again where she was going and why. Flapping like a flag in the wind, she yelled so her captor would hear her above the noise.

"Ano, Matsumoto-san!"

The Vice-Captain of the 10th Division didn't stop, but actually increased her shunpo and yelled back to the Kuchiki girl.

"_Nani?_ What is it?"

"Where are we going? And why do we have to get there so fast?" Rukia screamed into Matsumoto's ear.

Matsumoto grinned.

"_Gomen Rukia-chan_. Sorry Rukia-chan."

She twisted her head back so she was facing the small girl and said in a very fake tone:

"I can't hear you above all this wind, talk to me when we arrive, ne?"

Rukia sighed and allowed Matsumoto to take her wherever she wanted. She was still pretty confused.

Matsumoto gave a little smile. She was going to make everything right, along with Rukia's help.

_**FLASHBACK**_

"_Ahhhh. . ." _

_Matsumoto leaned back into her Captain's chair and gave a sign of contentment. She had finally finished all that paperwork. _

_She grinned as she remembered how Hisagi had come to visit her. He had been all shy and nervous so Matsumoto couldn't help but tease him. They had started up a conversion and it was nice. He was nice. Before she knew it, with Hisagi's help, she had finished the paperwork. _

_She decided to go find her Captain and was searching all over Seireitei for his reiatsu signature. She felt a faint trace of it towards Rukongai, and realised that he was probably visiting his grandmother. From the faintness, she guessed he had already stayed there for 2 days. She grinned as she headed off in the same direction, it will be her first time in ages to visit his grandmother. _

_On the way there, she saw a black shikashou in the crowd of Rukongai and she dove for it._

"_TAICHO!" She cried gleefully._

_WHAM._

"_Owww"_

"_Ara, what's this? You're not Taicho"_

_Kuchiki Rukia understood at that moment why Toshiro was always annoyed and tired of his bubbly, hyper Vice-Captain. _

"_Ohayo, Matsumoto-san." She said, dusting off her Shikashou._

"_Ohayo, Rukia-chan! Have you seen my Captain?"_

_Rukia stood up._

"_I saw him yesterday at the market. We shared a watermelon, and then I think he went off to his grandmother's."_

_Matsumoto frowned._

"_How was he?"_

"_Ok I guess. He was healthy, considering the amount of watermelon he ate. But something seemed to be on his mind. Was it because of Hinamori-FukuTaicho?" Rukia asked._

_Matsumoto nodded. _

"_Probably, he worries about her too much. She's the older one. . ."_

_Rukia smiled. _

"_I think Hitsugay-Taicho worries about everyone close to him as well as people he doesn't know that well. He just that way, though he doesn't show it very often."_

_Matsumoto froze._

_She had acted so upset and depressed in front of him 2 days ago. That probably landed onto his list of things to worry about; an extra burden to carry. _

"_Come on Kuchiki!"_

_She took the confused Soul Reaper by the arm and shunpo-ed away to Hitsugaya's old house._

_When they arrived it was empty._

"_Taicho! Taicho!" Matsumoto called out._

"_Hitsugaya Taicho?" Rukia joined in._

_They made their way down the hallway of the house and arrived at the back yard. The back yard marked the start of a hill which had a single peach tree sitting on the top. Matsumoto suddenly gave a small gasp and pulled Rukia with her as she jumped in a nearby bush. _

"_Wha-"_

_Rukia's surprised exclamation was cut short by Matsumoto's hand._

"_Shhh. Look"_

_Rukia quietened down and peeked through the hole in the bush where Matusmoto had indicated. The white haired boy they were searching for was sitting on the grass by an unmarked grave head. It looked like it had just been dug this morning as the soil around it was still moist. There was a branch from the peach tree placed on top of the grave. _

"_Oh no," Rukia whispered, "Is that-"_

"_Yeah," Matsumoto answered, "it's his grandmother."_

_**END FLASHBACK**_

Matsumoto had promptly backed out as fast as she could, grabbing a stunned Rukia with her. Then she proceeded to shun-po faster than she ever had in her whole life. Suddenly Rukia barrelled into Matsumoto as she stopped her furious pace.

"Whoa there!" Matsumoto giggled. "We're here; you don't need to hang to me anymore!"

Rukia nursed her sore head which had been severely bumped many times today. She closed her eyes as her fingers brushed over a particularly sore area.

"And where exactly is here?" she asked.

"4Th Division Hospital."

"Huh? Why here?"

Matsumoto turned to look at Rukia, all traces of playfulness gone.

"Because the only one who can fix up Taicho is in here."

She turned back to the entrance and stepped in.

"Come on. We're gonna have a talk with the Lieutenant of the 5th Division."

Rukia suddenly understood why they were here.

"Hinamori Momo."

**AUTHOR TIME: **REVIEW DAMN IT! :( it makes me upset that i've had over 150 hits and 5 reviews. . .make a sad author happy with just a review! PLEASE!


	4. Attack

**Author Time: **:D because i'm in a good mood i'm updating!

OMG! I ABSOLUTELY LOVE YOU GUYS! You guys rock! We're over 300 hits! : D and the number of reviews doubled! Now I know I shouldn't get excited about such a small number on fanfiction, but I can't help it! Every reader makes me feel happy because they took the time to actually read what I wrote, and maybe review!

MANY THANKS TO: iceyangel27, thegurlwhowrites7865, theramenfreak and of course, my beta: bookwormtiff!

Disclaimer: I figured that the poor Strawberry isn't getting enough attention, so ICHIGO! Say the disclaimer!

Ichigo: You appearance matches what Toshiro said about a creepy fan girl that kidnapped him.

Me: My, my, whatever could you be talking about, Ichigo?

Ichigo: Bankai! Tensa Zangetsu!

Me: Oh come on; is there any need for that?

Ichigo: Getsuga Tenshou!

Me: HOLY $#!

Ichigo: Send me back. NOW.

Me: *pouts* fine. But first you say the disclaimer!

Ichigo: …Aprilup does not own Bleach or me; she only owns this fanfic. There, now send me back.

Me: *winks* I don't think so!

Ichigo: WHA-

Me: Let's get on with the story shall we? :D

Ichigo: "muffled"HMRRFFFHAHIHO! (Lemme go)

Chapter 4

For as long as Hitsugaya Toshiro could remember, his grandmother had always been there, and had always understood him. She was constantly giving him advice, comforting him, and laughing with him, and made his life better just by staying by his side. But most of all, she wasn't afraid of him. She wasn't afraid of his icy personality or his odd hair and eyes. Now she was gone. And Hitsugaya felt like anything he did would be insignificant compared to what she had done for him.

"_Baa-chan…"_

He had woken up under the peach tree that morning and had seen that she was still asleep. He'd tried to wake her up, but there was no response. All he remembered of her last words that night to him was: "Take care of each other; you need it, my wonderful grandson."

What had that meant? Toshiro didn't know, and he didn't think about it. He was just… numb.

"""""""""""""""

Hinamori was sitting up on the hospital bed, looking out the window, when she suddenly thought of Baa-chan. As she mused over all the happy memories she had spent with the lovely grandmother, she realised that ever since she decided to be a Soul Reaper, she had gradually lost contact with Baa-chan. She saw her less often. No, that wasn't true. She hadn't seen Baa-chan at all.

_Aizen. . ._

He was the only reason she had kept her eyes on the future. With him gone, she felt like life, or rather death, was meaningless. She used to think that committing suicide was a better choice than to live in a world where Aizen was gone.

He was gone now. But the thought of killing herself seemed stupid. She wanted to hold onto this world, for some reason.

Hinamori vaguely felt a sense of reiastu, approaching at quite some speed and as it got closer, she realised that it was actually composed of two signatures. One was Matsumoto's and the other was Rukia Kuchiki. She was the girl who was rescued by that Kurosaki Ichigo, who was the one that had destroyed Aizen in the end.

Aizen had twisted her. Hurt her so badly, she'd felt like never speaking to anyone ever again. She had betrayed them all by believing him and standing up for him even when it obvious he was lying. But most of all, she had betrayed her childhood friend. She had raised Tobiume against him with the intention to kill.

Her two friends, Renji and Kira from the Academy days, had come to visit her. They had said it wasn't her fault and they were just glad to have her back. But Hinamori didn't feel relieved or happy at all. That forgiveness she wanted wasn't from the two of them. It was from the 10th Division Captain. But what could apologizing do? It wouldn't change the past, it wouldn't change anything. It would just make the situation worse.

"You still don't get it, do you, Momo-dono?"

Momo gasped and reached for her Zanpukuto beside her.

"Tobiume?"

"No, it's Zabimaru," a light sarcastic voice replied. "I have decided to tell you why I chose not to speak to you."

Momo looked down at the katana that lay in her hand.

"I'm disappointed in you, Momo-dono. I thought you were much smarter than that."

"I-I'm sorry Tobiume."

"You raised me with killing intent against Hyorinmaru-sama's wielder. And on top of that, you still haven't apologized for your mistake."

Momo opened her mouth to apologize once again… and the door of her room blew open. Standing in the doorway was the busty Vice Captain of 10th Division.

"Hinamori, I need to ask you something."

"R-Rangiku-san?"

The blond lady crossed the room in five strides and stopped next to Hinamori's bed.

"Do you know why taicho always comes to visit you?"

"Hitsugaya-kun? Nani?_ What?"_

Matsumoto looked down.

"Do you know why Taicho is always so tired and has bags under his eyes?"

There was silence.

"Do you know why Taicho became a Soul Reaper?"

Matsumoto's voice rose with each word she uttered.

"DO YOU KNOW THAT YOU HAVE TO HELP HIM?"

Hinamori was confused, and her face clearly showed it.

Matsumoto leaned forward and grabbed her arm.

"You have to go to him now. You're the only family he has left."

The impact of those words hit Hinamori and sunk deep into her. _Baa-chan was dead._

Baa-chan was dead. Her whole body shook as she began to cry. Baa-chan had gone before Hinamori could thank her for what she had done for her. Baa-chan was her family too. Matsumoto tightened her grip on Hinamori's wrist.

"Don't cry. You have to be strong for taicho. He's been strong for you so many times! You could just help him this once."

Hinamori started to wail.

"What can I do? Baa-chan. . . .Baa-chan is dead. I never got to say thank you to her."

"Hinamori, I'm sorry about your loss, but you have to go to taicho, right now! He needs you! Just as much as you need him!"

Hinamori was shocked at those words.

"Rangiku-san, I-I can't go. Shiro-chan doesn't trust me anymore, I'm scared! He-he doesn't want to see me right now, I'm sure of it!"

Rukia walked in. She knew Matsumoto had brought her here to help, and so she was going to fulfil her part of the bargain. And Rukia was sick of hearing all this time-wasting talk.

She was going to change Hinamori Momo's mind.

**SLAP!**

There was silence. Rukia had stepped past the arguing Matsumoto and slapped Hinamori full across the face.

"N-nani? What?"

"Please try to understand our feelings, Hinamori-san."

Rukia took a deep breath. Here goes.

"Rangiku-san and I want to help you. We're not trying to hurt you or Hitsugaya-taicho."

Matsumoto had folded her arms, and was nodding.

"Rangiku-san and I both had someone special, someone very dear to us. We never bothered to appreciate them or thank them for just being there for us when we needed it."

Rukia paused, composing herself.

"Then suddenly one day, they were both ripped out of our grasp, just like that. Leaving nothing behind but our thoughts of them. We regret it every second, every minute, and every day, and we're going to regret it forever. We never got the chance to tell them a proper goodbye the way we wanted to. We never told them just how special they were to us."

Rukia took another small breath.

"I never got to tell him how special he was to me," she whispered.

Matsumoto sat down on the bed next to Hinamori.

"We all know already taicho is someone special to you. We just don't want to see the same thing happen, especially when you two have a chance. Rukia-chan and I lost ours, so we know. That's why we never want someone to lose theirs."

Hinamori knew exactly who they were talking about.

"I understand… Rangiku-san, Rukia-san."

She hopped off the bed and put on her shikashou. "I'm going to see Shiro-chan."

She grabbed Tobiume.

"I promise I'll make things right."

**AUTHOR TIME: **kekeke, next time the confrontation, but will things go right? *wink, wink* *nudge, nudge* kekekeekeke! REVIEW!

Arigatou Gozaimasu!

Aprilup


	5. Impact

**AUTHOR TIME: **GAH! Such a late update . . . school swamped me, and I decided to change this whole chapter (as in re-write) twice! Also, I decided not to send to my beta and edited it again by myself. Hence another reason why it's so late! But it's a super long chappie to make up for it!

I just basically rushed this whole thing tonight, so I apologize if some bits don't connect properly! I'll edit it later, I just really wanted to get this up!

Oh well, enjoy! :D

DISCLAIMER: Well now, how about our cute little ruru-Chan says it today!

RUKIA: . . . O_O ruru?

ME: :D just say it!

RUKIA: I think I heard about you from Ichigo.

ME: Don't trust that guy, he's just pulling your leg, I'm very nice! ;D

RUKIA: Mai! Sode No Shiraiyuki!

RUKIA: Tsugi no Mai: Tsukishiro!

ME: *frozen in a block of ice*

ME: *thinking* wow, she's fast! I couldn't even get her to say the disclaimer!

I DO NOT OWN BLEACH! :D

Chapter 5

"Hinamori Fuku-Taichou. You are not permitted to leave the hospital. This is for your own good, otherwise your wounds might open up again or you might-"

Unohana-Taicho's desperate voice was interrupted by Hinamori.

"I might what? Go crazy? I'm fine! I've had lots of time to think over what I had done. I understand if you don't trust me, but not trusting me to this extent is too much Unohana . . .Taicho!" Hinamori yelled, just remembering to add on the taicho.

The kind lady winced as she heard Hinamori's words.

"I'm truly sorry Hinamori-kun, but your wounds were quite severe and the sword that formed that wound was an ice zanpukto. The wound was closed over quite roughly with a chunk of ice. Your heart may still have traces of the reiatsu of that ice and if you're under high pressure or emotional stress, your heart might just get frozen!"

The silence that followed was deafening.

Matsumoto sighed. She should've known that convincing Hinamori to go to her Captain wasn't the hardest thing. Hinamori was still healing, so of course Unohana-Taicho wouldn't let her go.

_Especially since she doubts Hinamori's mental state._

Rukia had sincerely apologized for the slap she had given Hinamori and had run off claiming she had "duty" to do. Therefore, she left Matsumoto to deal with the hard part of getting Hinamori out.

"Unohana-Taicho, I'll make sure Hinamori-kun doesn't leave this room. When you say she is ready, she can come with me, is that alright?"

Hinamori stared at Matsumoto, uncomprehending.

The gentle Captain nodded and smiled.

"Arigato, Matsumoto Fuku-Taicho."

"Matsumoto-san, what-"

Matsumoto covered Hinamori's mouth with her hand and waited until the Captain was much further down the corridor before releasing.

"What kind of cloaking kido can you do Hinamori?"

The girl looked confused.

"Come on! Otherwise you'll never get out of here!"

"But, Matsumoto-san, there is no kido that can completely cover someone's reiatsu; there's always going to be some trace of the reiatsu! Enough so that a well-trained Captain can spot it!"

Hinamori stopped.

"Unless. . ."

"Unless?"

Hinamori looked up at Matsumoto.

"If someone stays in the room for a while I can create a Kido Barrier so that their reiatsu signature feels like mine. Therefore, Unohana-Taicho can feel "my" reiatsu in the room and she won't think that I've escaped."

"I'll stay." Matsumoto said without a thought.

Hinamori placed her hands in Matsumoto's shoulders.

"Look of confusion, shine through the night, cast away all inhabitations tying down in the earth, spread the wings of gloom and mist to muddle the mind."

A whitish-blue glow surrounded Matsumoto.

"Bakudo No. 69! Mirror Mist!"

The glow faded.

"Ara? It didn't work?"

Hinamori giggled.

"No, no. It worked fine! Your signature is now mine!"

Hinamori turned to go but then suddenly stopped in her tracks.

"A-ano, Matsumoto-san?"

Matsumoto had sat down on the bed, testing its bounciness.

"What is it?"

"Do you really think that I could help him?"

Matsumoto smiled.

"Of course! Just being near him is a cure for him!"

An overeager group of young shinigami headed towards Training Ground No. 10, excitedly chatting about their new uniforms and zanpuktos. Fresh graduates out of the Academy, they couldn't wait to try and use all the facilities given to fully fledged shinigami. But of course, they had no idea about who liked to use which training ground and when.

"Ah. You might not want to go there!" Hisagi Shuuhei yelled towards the newbies.

He sighed.

_Idiots._

"A certain 10th Division Captain has released his Bankai and is busy tearing it up, so unless you wanna test his temper to stay like a block of ice forever, I'd suggest avoiding that training ground!"

He muttered something else about freshmans and then turned to see Kira Izuru heading his way.

"Ah, Kira! Could you mind the training grounds for an hour or two? I've got something I've got to take care of."

"A-a-ah. . .hai!" Kira stuttered.

"Arigato! Ja, na?"

Kira nodded vigorously.

After Hisagi left, Kira looked down.

_Dammit._

Just when he had finally decided to tell Hinamori about his feelings for her, he was stuck with this job for another 2 hours! Kira sighed. Maybe it was karma telling him that it was a bad idea to talk to Hinamori right now.

BOOM

Kira shivered as a wave of cold air blew over from Training Ground No. 10. He stared at the hill that hid the training ground behind it. What had got the Captain so flustered that he had needed to come to the training grounds to distract him?

"_. . .Oi! Don't you think you're overdoing it a little?"_

Hitsugaya ignored the voice and continued to plough on.

"_OI! Hitsugaya-Sama-"_

"Shut up," Hitsugaya answered emotionlessly.

He swung Hyorinmaru again and again, creating a giant snow tornado. The entire training ground was littered with sharp bits of ice and chunks of pure, white snow. The ground had been torn up and all the surrounding grass had turned brown because of the temperature; which was currently at -10 degrees and getting lower by the minute.

"_Toshiro."_

"Shiro-chan!"

By reflex Hitsugaya stopped and automatically corrected her.

"Hitsugaya-taicho."

Then he seemed to realise exactly who had come to see him.

"Hinamori? I thought you were still in 4th Division."

"I'm alright now, they let me out," Hinamori lied.

She looked around the training ground and saw the destruction that he wreaked upon the poor field. It was a beautiful yet deadly and saddening sight. Tears began to well up in her eyes; they slid down her cheeks and dropped off the edge of her chin. Furiously, she began to rub her eyes, vainly attempting to stop the flow of tears. But everything that had been bottled up inside all at once was released.

Hitsugaya was still wondering why Hinamori had come and what had made her cry so suddenly. He clenched his zanpukto tighter. Whoever had caused those tears is going to get it from him. How dare they upset Momo, just when she had been released and was still in such a fragile state?

"What is it? Who is it?" He asked Hinamori who was still quietly crying.

She let out a wail and launched herself into his arms. She held on to him tightly, the sobs now wracking her whole body. She shook her head. Nothing was wrong with her, nobody had upset her. Nothing had hurt her. Hitsugaya was the one hurting, so why is he only thinking of her? He is the one that should be crying, not her. But, she couldn't stop the endless flow of waterworks.

Hitsugaya gently let his zanpukto fall from his hand and clatter on the ground. He raised both arms and wrapped them around the girl that was sobbing into his shoulder. He gently stroked her hair which was loose and for once not in a bun.

"Did you hear about Baa-Chan?" He quietly asked.

She pulled back.

"How did you know that I knew-"

"I'm a Captain bed wetter. I would know my Vice-Captain's signature from anywhere, especially if she's hiding in a bush 25 metres away from me with other high reiatsu shinigami."

He frowned.

"Matsumoto shouldn't have told you."

The words shocked Hinamori.

"WHAT? So you would have just let me go on, thinking Baa-Chan was fine, even though she was DEAD? You would have just not told me? I-you-how could you do that Shiro-chan?"

He looked away.

"Why? Why?" Hinamori whispered.

"Why does everyone have to hide things from me? I'm not a child that needs to be protected! I'm a Vice-Captain in Gotei 13!"

She took a deep breath.

"You don't need to protect me Shiro-chan. Protecting me has only given you more scars and pain, it doesn't have any benefits. I can look after myself."

He didn't move.

"I'm sorry for attacking you and not believing you. I just didn't know what to do anymore."

He looked straight into Hinamori's eyes. All of the normal the icy façade was gone. Those beautiful turquoise eyes reflected pain, betrayal and strangely, longing. Hinamori stared back, absorbed in those eyes. The eyes she had known for so long, yet had no idea they contained so much.

_All my time, all that time, what was I doing?_

She was chasing after a person who didn't really exist and cared nothing for her. It was a person who had taken up all her time, all her effort and in the end cost her the trust of her friends. She lowered her gaze.

"Aizen," she murmured.

Hitsugaya blinked and the stony front was back. He dropped his hands from Hinamori and stepped back.

He then muttered something so low, Hinamori (who was very close to him) didn't even hear.

"What?" she asked.

"I said: Why are you still thinking about that bastard?" he yelled.

"I-I'm not!" Hinamori stuttered, shocked by the suddenly volume Hitsugaya had.

"Yes, yes you are! You're always thinking about him! You talk about him in your dreams; you talk about him when you're awake! He hurt you! He hurt all of us, yet you still think about him in a good way?"

"N-no, Shiro-chan, you've got it wrong! I was just-"

But Hitsugaya had already flash stepped away.

"No. . . . Shiro-chan. . . ." Hinamori fell to knees.

The waterworks returned, fiercer than before. It wasn't what she was meant to say! She was going to stop Hitsugaya from feeling sad and stop him from protecting her. She was going to apologize and they would be friends again. But it had all gone wrong.

Aizen may be out of their lives now, but the impact he left behind still continues to hurt them.

**AUTHOR TIME: **:D yes, I did make that Bakudo up! I always wanted to create a Bakudo!

Yes, poor Shiro-chan and poor Momo.

SO, review? ;)


	6. Fireworks

AUTHOR TIME: :D wow, 6 chappies! SO MUCH!

Thank you to iceyangel27 and thegurlwhowrites7865 for being the only 2 reviewers for chapter 6!

To thegurlwhowrites7865: LOL my beta thought that it was a real bakudo too! Personally I thought that it sounded really dodgy and everyone would immediately tell that it was made up!

REASON FOR LATE UPDATE: the final chapter of each story should be super long and super effective.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Bleach. (A NORMAL DISCLAIMER! Shock horror)

Chapter 6

Hinamori had her usual pink blanket wrapped around her. Her hair was tied back in the usual bun, covered by a blue cloth. It was supposed to be a night of celebration; 12th Division had collaborated with Shiba Kukaku to create some new fireworks for the whole of Soul Society. Everyone had gathered to watch the show, and even all the Captains and Vice-Captains were given a free night to relax and enjoy.

Hisagi Shuuhei had invited Matsumoto to go fireworks viewing from his division because 9th Division had a pretty good view. Momo had thought it was pretty rude to interrupt the two of them; and since there was no one else who was free that night, Momo ended up alone on the roof of her house. Wrapped in her familiar blanket, and sipping some hot green tea, she wondered if there was anyone else out there all alone tonight. Fireworks were meant to be watched with friends and family. She looked up at the half-full moon; tonight was supposed to mark the start of "winter" in Soul Society. But the temperature was too high for it to feel like winter. It wasn't even snowing! She gently set her tea down and closed her eyes.

She had only seen fireworks once, and it was on that night. Matsumoto had begged, or rather "persuaded", 12th Division for what seemed like forever just to get them to light a 10 minute show. But it was worth it. That night, she had been up on the roof with Matsumoto and Aizen.

And Toshiro.

It was beautiful, and was made even more magical by sharing the view with her _nakama_. It would have been even better though, if it were snowing. Matsumoto had whined about that, and Hinamori secretly agreed. Only snow would have made that night any better than it was.

This time, 12th Division promised a ½ hour show of fireworks to the whole of Seireitei.

More than anything, even more than wishing it would snow tonight, she wished that she could take back what she had said to Hitsugaya. He was her only family left, her only source of comfort. They should be watching together on a night like this. She hadn't meant to hurt him more, but… she had. Anything she did seemed to help fix nothing. Matsumoto was wrong. She wasn't the one that could heal Hitsugaya; she had only further exacerbated his wounds. He was hurting too; why didn't she realise it earlier? Even Matsumoto had.

Dammit.

Even though he was locked away so that he could never harm anyone again, his actions still continued to haunt Momo.

Damn that Aizen.

Damn him.

BANG

The first firework shot into the sky and exploded in a bright blue, crystalline shower, shaking Hinamori out of her thoughts. The show had started. Incessant streams of colours filled Seireitei's sky, and raucous cheers of celebration could be heard all around. As the show continued, Hinamori felt like she wanted to curl into a ball to hide the pain in her heart. It was so lonely, hearing everyone's laughter and gasps of amazement. But she kept on telling herself that she deserved it. After all she had done to everyone, she deserved it. Yet a small corner of her heart yelled out that this wasn't fair.

She buried her head in her lap. It was all she could do to hold back her tears.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Hitsugaya didn't look up as the beautiful sparks lit up the night sky above him. He was intent on heading to where Hinamori was; he had to apologize to her. He wasn't thinking right at the time. Hinamori must have had a reason for remembering Aizen. Baa-chan had told him to take care of her, but he hadn't.

As Hitsugaya headed towards her reiatsu, he became more and more perplexed by the fact that Hinamori was at 9th Division. It made sense that she would be in one of the best places to watch the show, but Matsumoto wasn't with her. In fact, Hinamori's reiatsu was the only one he could sense on the top balcony. He frowned; it was just Hisagi Shuuhei's and Hinamori's reiatsu signatures on the balcony. And the two signatures were close, very close together.

Strange.

The Captain increased his pace.

CRASH

He knocked down the doors leading to the room from which the balcony was attached to.

"Hinamori?"

Matsumoto was in Shuuhei's arms when Hitsugaya crashed in. She quickly disentangled herself.

"EH?"

"Taicho? What are you doing here? Aren't you with Hinamori?"

Hitsugaya Toshiro was now thoroughly confounded. He was staring at Matsumoto but the reiatsu signature he felt from her was Hinamori's. It didn't make any sense. Matsumoto suddenly seemed to sense his confusion and quickly sorted things out.

"Ah, Taicho, gomen nasai! Hinamori-kun put a Bakudo on me but I don't know how to take it off. It's No. 69 Mirror Mist."

Hitsugaya mentally face palmed himself.

He did several hand signatures and tapped Matsumoto lightly on her shoulder with a finger.

"_Genzuru._ Reveal."

A pale glow surrounded Matsumoto for a second and then faded.

The reiatsu Hitsugaya now sensed was Matsumoto's. Hinamori's reiatsu, the real Hinamori's, was now close to her house.

"_Ja._ Later."

"Ah, hurry up and get to Hinamori-kun before the fireworks end, ne, taicho?"

Hitsugaya gave a slight wave to acknowledge that he heard and turned to leave.

"Ah! _Chotto matte!_ Hang on a sec!"

"_Nani?_ What is it?"

Matsumoto grinned at her captain.

"Please taicho, please make it snow tonight!"

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

The show was nearly over; only about 5 minutes to go. Hinamori sighed. She might as well enjoy the last few minutes. Slowly, she raised her head from her lap and lifted it to the sky. Something white suddenly filled her vision.

A single white snowflake landed on her nose.

Then another landed on her left cheek, and another on her forehead. Hinamori couldn't believe it. It was snowing! It was snowing!

She stood up and stretched out her hands to the sky to catch as many of the unique snowflakes as she could, gathering them in and splashing them all over her face. Hinamori giggled; she had missed having fun in the snow. The pure white of it seemed to wash away all dark thoughts and feelings and replaced them with a calm and content mood. The snow began to fall thicker and heavier; already the roof had a thin white layer of snow. Hinamori danced around, making snow prints and snow angels on her roof. Rolling around and chucking snow everywhere, she was having more fun than she ever had in ages.

Soon her cheeks were flushed a bright pink and she was puffing heavily. But her eyes sparkled with a playful gleam, something that hadn't appeared in for long. She began to dance and jump here and there. She twirled and twirled, around and around and suddenly came face to face with Hitsugaya.

"S-Shiro-chan," Hinamori stuttered.

She forced herself to be more composed; this was her chance! She had to apologize properly. Hinamori took a step back and the sole of her _waraji_ slid across the snowy surface. She completely lost her balance and started to fall off the roof.

"KYAAAH!"

Hinamori closed her eyes and braced for a heavy impact that never came. Slowly she opened her eyes. Somehow Hitsugaya had managed to grab her hand before she fell and was now the only thing between her and a horrible fall. Hitsugaya sighed and pulled her up easily with just one hand. Hinamori collapsed as soon as she was back on the roof. Her legs were still quivering.

"_Mataku. . ._Honestly. . ." Hitsugaya gently brushed off the snow that had fallen on her head.

Hinamori looked up.

"You're clearly as clumsy as ever, bed wetter."

"Hitsugaya-kun, I-" Hinamori stopped. What should she say?

"Do you like the snow?"

Hinamori looked confused. Why was he asking about that? Then everything made sense, Hitsugaya must have used his zanpukuto to manipulate the weather and make it snow.

He had unknowingly granted her two wishes. The first was for it to be snowing and the second was to spend the rest of the fireworks show with someone.

She nodded in reply.

"Arigato, Toshiro."

Hitsugaya's eyebrows rose. She had never called him by his full first name before.

Slowly, Hinamori leaned in and placed her lips on his.

Just at that time, the final firework burst into the sky. It was the biggest explosion all night. Little glittering colours of blue, green and gold fluttered down from the finale and raucous cheers could be heard again. The shining colours mixed with the steadily falling snow, a beautiful sight and truly fitting for the finale.

,,,,,,,,,

He may have left behind a giant impact on everyone, but eventually all wounds will heal. A crater can easily be filled again by friends, with love and hope for the future. And at that moment, nothing seemed better or brighter to the two sitting on the roof.

The End.

,,,,,,,,

**AUTHOR TIME: **OH MY GOD! That was seriously cheesy . . . and I promised my friend I wouldn't make them kiss, but I did anyways . . . GAH! It felt a bit awkward for it to end with just them hugging or something.

ANYWAYS REVIEW! :D:D:D

P.S What my beta said after editing and giving it back:

Beta: ! (kyaaaaaaaa!) :D Good story aprillup!


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